Cipher
by GrumpySpaceKitten
Summary: Eren and Levi have a few important code phrases.
1. Chapter 1

"Section Commander Hanji will have further details if you're interested." Levi straightens out his papers as he finishes the debriefing. "You're all dismissed - except Eren. Bathrooms, bleach, go."

Eren gives a loud groan but nods and files out behind Mikasa and Armin. "Where are you going?" Armin asks when Eren turns to the right; shouldn't he be going left if he needs to get the bleach?

"Oh, uh… Just… Taking the long way, I guess. A bit of procrastination." he shrugs. He walks quickly down the hall to avoid further questions.

* * *

"Arlert, I get your schtick is a frail body with a strong mind, but your punches need to shape up right fucking now. It's disgraceful. You keep throwing hits like that and you'll break your wrist."

Armin flinches under the Captain's withering glare. "Y-yes, sir. Sorry, sir."

"And Eren," Armin winces for his friend. Levi is on a role, there's no way he's about to say anything praising. "Your bunk? Fucking disgusting. Just because you're part titan doesn't mean you get to live in the same way those slobs do."

Eren casts a surprised glance over his shoulder, pausing mid kick. "Sir?"

"Did I stutter, Jaeger?"

"Uh, no, sir. Sorry, sir. I guess it's just been a while-"

"I know," cuts in Levi, voice hard. "Go take care of it now."

"Yes, sir!" Eren calls as Levi marches away.

Maybe Armin just hates cleaning more than Eren does, but does Eren look… A little excited? No. Definitely not.

* * *

"Then Mikasa told my mom about it, of course, and I got yelled at for days." Eren and his friends laugh over dinner, all tired after a day of riding and unforgiving ODM manuveurs and ready to unwind over food and drink.

Eren's laughter dies immediately when a hand clamps down on his shoulder. Levi leans in close, expression as flat as ever. "Mop. Upstairs. Right now."

Eren can't even help his long, reluctant groan. He gives a grumbled, "Yes, sir." and gets up, dragging his feet as he heads to fetch a mop.

"Man, either Jaeger really sucks at cleaning or the Captain has it out for him," Jean says once he is confident that Levi is out of earshot.

"Just be glad it isn't you!" chimes Sasha.

Mikasa scowls at her supper. "If I find out that midget is purposely singling Eren out, he and I are going to have some words."

Armin lets his comrades gossip over it while his mind ponders something peculiar. He could have sworn, just as Eren was leaving, he saw a giddy smile spread across Eren's face.

* * *

"Credit where credit is due, kid, you always do a good job of acting disappointed."

Eren beams at the praise. Door locked, curtains drawn, both of them naked, and three fingers deep in the shorter man, Eren is definitely not cleaning. He twists his digits deeper and Levi keens. Back arching, he adjusts his weight from hands and knees to knees and elbows instead as he lets his head hang heavily between his shoulders, basking in pleasure. "Thank you, sir."

Levi rolls his eyes. The title is used in mocking; it's always first names when they're in his room. "Though you keep talking back to me and I'll have to discipline you for it."

"Oh, really?" Eren hums. He angles his fingers; every time he plunges them into the sopping wet hole he rubs against a bundle of nerves that makes Levi let out choked noises. "Awfully cocky coming from the guy who always bottoms."

"Jaeger, you get an attitude with me and - _ah, shit!_ \- and I _will_ cut your dick off." Maybe the threat would be a little more concerning if it wasn't interrupted by Levi's deep moans. As it is, it just makes Eren laugh a little.

"Whatever you say," he grins. He doesn't give Levi time to give a snarky retort; instead, he grabs the smaller man's hips and buries himself to the hilt in one fluid thrust. Levi buries his face in his shoulder and bites down on his bicep to keep from letting out a moan that would definitely be heard by the rest of the corps.

Levi pushes back into every snap of Eren's hips as he boy strokes a hand down his spine. Then he presses down between Levi's shoulders, purring in his ear, "Stay still and take what you're given."

Levi should snap at him for presuming to give orders, but really all he can do is let out a whimpering moan as Eren's roughened voice goes straight to his cock. With every thrust he becomes more submissive, quaking body pliant and willing to let Eren have his way - so long as this decadent pleasure never ends.

When Eren pulls Levi up to rest on his haunches, the captain's back flush with Eren's chest, the blunt head of his arousal hitting the man's prostate with every movement, Levi loses any semblance of self-control. He cries out and drops his head back against Eren's shoulders, a steady stream of breathless curses falling from his swollen lips; his hands twist behind him to grab at the short hairs at Eren's nape, desperate for some sort of anchor before he loses himself entirely to the bliss.

And Eren - he's in no better condition. He can't help it; watching Levi fall apart completely is more than just seductive, it's absolutely enthralling. Eren can't tear his eyes away from his lover's flushed cheeks and parted lips, losing himself to every gasp of, "Fuck, yes! Right there! Right there! Harder - _fucking hell_ \- harder!" But what makes his balls tighten even more and his fluid rhythm go staccato is Levi's broken whines and moaned out "Eren!"s. No music is more beautiful than his whimpered name said heavy with pleasure by the shorter man.

" _Levi,_ " Eren growls in his ear, purely animalistic, and Levi shudders. He can't help it if his inner beast comes out, Levi makes him lose all restraint.

They buck against each other, desperately chasing their releases, and when Levi comes he moans out, "Ahn! _Eren!_ Fuck- Nnnh! Eren, fuck!" so loud and high and breathless, it's a wonder no one has heard them. The way he spasms around Eren's cock is enough to push the younger over the edge to his own climax.

"Nnngh, Levi." he groans deep in his chest as he feels himself spend in his lover, and the Captain's softening cock gives one last weak spurt in reply.

Eren collapses back on the bed. Somewhere during their foreplay all the pillows and blankets had been shoved out of the way to the floor; they can sort those out later. For now, Levi turns over to face the boy, their sweat-slicked chests heaving as they try to catch their breath. Nothing needs to be said yet, they simply look at each other and appreciate the wonderful boneless feeling that follows sex.

Eventually, Eren finds it in himself to move and brings a shaky hand up, brushing Levi's damp bangs back he strokes his thumb back and forth across his cheekbone. Levi subtly leans into the touch as he says ever sweet and heartfelt words:

"In all seriousness, the chandeliers _are_ dustier than an out-of-business prostitute's vagina."


	2. Chapter 2

"You look deep in thought there, Armin," Hanji hums as she passes him in the mess hall. Armin startles at her voice; he hasn't even touched his food yet, thoughts so preoccupied with something else. "What is that devious mind of yours coming up with this time?"

"Oh, well, it's not really of any help to the titan problem…"

Hanji still plops herself beside him and smiles. "Must be something fun to keep you so interested in it. Do share."

"It's just… More of a mundane observation, really…" Hanji is still watching him with rapt attention so Armin sighs before sharing more. "I've just noticed that Captain Levi seems to be a little more demanding about cleaning lately. I guess that in and of itself isn't all that odd, he has a bunch of new recruits to get up to his standards. But… It seems like the only one whose workload has increased is Eren."

"That is a curious observation," agrees Hanji.

"Even more than that, Eren, though he seems to try to hide it, almost looks… happy to be doing all this extra work."

"Fascinating!"

Armin shrugs as nervous fingers fidget and pick apart his loaf of bread. "It's not really worth wasting any thought on, I know, but-"

"Oh, no, you're quite wrong, my friend." Hanji cuts in, a devious smile spreading across her face. "Even now I find our Captain Levi a bit of an enigma, and I welcome any chance to annoy him by digging into his private matters. I hope you'll excuse me if I do my own information gathering on this first before we work further into the problem."

* * *

Now that is has been pointed out, Hanji realises just how spot on Armin had been. It seems every time she turns around Eren is being assigned a new chore. Eren, scrub the kitchen floors. Eren, clean out the fireplace in the common room. Eren, go hang the linens. Eren, Eren, Eren, Eren. And only ever Eren. And what she finds ever more curious is, that though Eren gives the occasional whine or lets his shoulders droop and his salute be more than a little half-hearted, his displeasure is only a show! As soon as he thinks his comrades' eyes are off him, he is as light-hearted as ever, no matter how displeasing the task given to him.

Finally, Hanji can't bear to wait any longer, the evidence is damning. When Levi tells Eren to go clean out the stables, she is quick to hurry off and find Armin. "Sorry, Ness, he's going to be exempting this lesson!" she calls over her shoulder as she drags the boy from the classroom.

"W-wait, Section Commander, wh-what's going on?!" asks Armin, bewildered.

Once they are a good ways down the hall she turns to whisper to him, hand over the side of her mouth in a very conspiratorial fashion. "You were right! Instincts dead on, as always. Now that I knew what to look for, I realised just how often Eren was being singled out. Moreover, he was just sent to clean out the stables, and you know what? He had a spring in his step! I understand wanting to learn more through bodily functions, but even I've never been eager for that task."

Armin blinks then nods once. "We ought to go ask him about this, right now."

"My thoughts exactly," grins Hanji.

* * *

"Levi… Ohh, L-Levi!" Eren feels as if his quivering knees will give out at any moment, the threat growing larger with every lewd slurp as Levi bobs his head down the length of Eren's member. Eren fists his hands tight in the captain's hair and tries to fight off the urge to desperately buck his hips in search of his release. Damn it, Levi is too talented to use blowjobs as foreplay; Eren already finds himself so desperate to blow his load.

He tries to step back and find a wall to steady himself against but only manages to knock into a broom. "Did- did we really have to do it here?"

Eren shudders at the wet noise Levi makes when he pulls off the boy's cock to look around the supply closet. "This is the best place in the whole castle," he deadpans. He stands up as he unbuckles his ODM gear then slides his trousers down to mid-thigh. "Besides, it's near the stables, so once we're done here you can go actually do your job."

"You're the one who wants to fuck four times a day and decided that chores would be the most discreet way to say it!"

"I don't hear you complaining this much when you're in my ass."

Eren can't find a decent response to that.

Levi jumps up to wrap his legs around the boy's waist, Eren quick to catch him under the thighs. Levi grabs his cock to hold steady and they both moan as he sinks down on it. Eren turns to press Levi's back against the wall, finding a good angle before he moves his hips slow. Almost immediately Levi buries his face in his lover's shoulder. He's so responsive to pleasure, body already shivering as he gasps out quiet moans; it makes Eren hard as a rock. Definitely not complaining now.

* * *

Armin and Hanji head quickly to the barren stables. "Ah ha!" Hanji grins, hitting her fist into her open palm. "I knew it! The castle simply isn't clean enough for Eren having done all these chores. Which means that these phrases are simply a cipher of some sort - so what is it that these ciphers are hiding, hmm?"

Hanji paces as she ponders this but Armin feels the hair on the back of his neck rise. He's starting to feel uncomfortable with this like he doesn't actually want to know the answer to his question. Not like Hanji will let it go until she gets results.

So, when she exclaims loudly, Armin follows her with timid steps. "Eren must be somewhere near here, he would have to give the illusion of going to clean the stables, right? So he's somewhere around-" Her head whips around as if she heard something, Armin thinks he can hear it too, and a slowly a broad grin splits her face.

"That," she says, pointing to the closet of cleaning supplies. "Is where I think our friend is hiding. So let us learn what this secret of his is."

Armin wrings his hands as he follows Hanji's purposeful stride. "S-Section Commander… Maybe- maybe it might be best for us to leave well enough alone… I mean, we can't always know everything about the people around us. And-and it might be embarrassing for Eren, so that's why he kept it secret in the first place."

His protests fall on deaf ears, which only makes Armin's unease even worse. He almost tries to stop Hanji, but then she has flung the door open and he utterly freezes at the sight.

There, crowded against the far wall, Eren has the Captain in his arms as he thrusts into him with abandon. Levi's legs are cinched around Eren's waist, his eyes screwed shut as he bites desperately into the titan shifter's shoulder to muffle his cries of ecstasy as Eren strokes him to completion and he spills sticky fluid onto their stomachs. Eren growls the Captain's name in such an animalistic way as spends inside Levi, who whimpers high in his throat as overstimulation sends his nerves into overdrive. Eren snarls again at the noise and pulls Levi back by the hair to lock their mouths in a tongue heavy kiss, panting harshly into the other's mouth.

Mortified, Armin's hands fly up to cover his bulging eyes as he nearly shrieks, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm so sorry!"

Eren quickly whips his head around as Levi stares over his shoulder. They all freeze.

All except for Hanji, who starts to cackle so loudly it echoes through the courtyard. "Your-your code is chores, and-and-and this is what you two use it to hide?!" she shouts as she holds her stomach, laughter ringing. "You act like you're cleaning so-so you can go off and fuck?!" She all but screams as she laughs, holding onto the door frame to keep upright.

The other three don't dare move as her laughter slowly dies off and she lifts her goggles to wipe tears from her eyes. "Ahh," she breathes out and places her hands on Armin's shoulders, face still red and beaming. "Thank you for setting me on this path, Armin. It has been quite the discovery. Oh, what a day, ha!" she laughs once more as she walks off.

All colour drains from Armin's face and he glances at the couple, still holding onto each other as they regain their breath. Eren is blushing from his ears to his chest, absolute horror written across his expression; meanwhile, grey eyes glare daggers at Armin as Levi seems to be thinking of all the different kinds of "accidents" he could cause out in the field that would end up with Arlert getting eaten.

"I-I should get back to class!" Armin squeaks, high pitched and strangled. He doesn't think he's ever run away so fast, not even from a titan.

* * *

As he prepares for bed that evening, Armin scrubs at his face with a soapy rag as if that could wash away the events of the day. He knows sex happens, it always has. Even as a bunch of young cadets in training, it wasn't totally uncommon to walk in on a couple getting it on where they thought was a secluded place. The fact is, they all know the next mission might be their last. That thought doesn't give them a lot of cause for restraint. So, while they still all might be shy about telling their crush their feelings, when two of them are horny, they go for it. It's not as if a one night stand makes a couple. Armin knows most of his friends have boned someone in the last couple weeks at least. Just a few days ago he, Mikasa, and Eren were in town where they saw Reiner and some girl cleaning up after an obvious round together. These things just happened, it was part of life. There's no stigma to them - a guy wants to sleep with a guy, go for it; a guy wants to sleep with a girl, go for it; a girl wants to sleep with a girl, go for it. They all just indulged themselves, knowing it might be their last.

In the mirror Armin catches a glimpse of Eren and Mikasa as they head to bed. He turns a bright red and resumes his scrubbing. Just because he knew people around him had sex didn't mean he wanted to know his best friend was having it, and with _Captain Levi_ of all people.

Armin rinses off the soap then looks at his raw skin. When it comes to day-to-day life in the castle, he vows to keep his ponderings to himself.


End file.
